Ingredients
Chicken and Vegetables
- 8 pieces skin-on bone-in chicken thighs and legs (patted dry, room temperature)
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 4 ounces pearl onions (fresh peeled or frozen) or large diced shallot
- 3 strips thick cut bacon (cut into strips, lardons)
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
Liquids and Herbs
- 1 cup dry white wine (preferably unoaked)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme (tied with bay leaf in twine)
- 1 bay leaf (tied with thyme in twine)
Seasonings and Thickening
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon fine kosher salt (plus more to taste)
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (plus more to taste)
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 handful fresh chopped parsley (for garnish, optional)
Instructions
- Preheat: Arrange a rack in the center third of the oven and preheat to 325°F (163°C).
- Sauté Mushrooms: In a large Dutch oven, dry sauté the cremini mushrooms over medium-high heat, seasoning them with salt and pepper and stirring frequently until they shrink by half. Add olive oil and cook undisturbed for 2 to 3 minutes until golden. Remove mushrooms and set aside.
- Cook Lardons: Lower heat to medium-low and add bacon strips to the pan. Cook, stirring frequently until bacon is crispy. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon, leaving bacon grease in the pan. Set bacon aside on paper towels.
- Sear Chicken and Onions: Increase heat to medium-high. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Cook chicken skin side down in bacon grease for 3–5 minutes until skin is golden and crispy. With the last chicken batch, add pearl onions and brown alongside. Remove chicken and leave onions in the pot.
- Make Braising Liquid: Lower heat to medium. Add smashed garlic to the pot. Whisk in white wine and chicken stock, scraping up browned bits from the bottom. Add thyme and bay leaf tied in twine. Bring mixture to a simmer.
- Braise Chicken: Place chicken pieces skin side up into the simmering liquid. Transfer Dutch oven to the preheated oven and braise for 40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and tender (internal temperature for dark meat: 190°–200°F).
- Prepare Beurre Manié: While chicken braises, mash the softened butter and flour together until forming a smooth paste.
- Thicken Sauce: After braising, remove the Dutch oven from the oven and place on stovetop over medium-low heat. Remove chicken carefully and set aside. Whisk beurre manié into the sauce a spoonful at a time, simmering and whisking constantly for about 5 minutes until sauce thickens. Adjust seasoning to taste.
- Finish and Serve: Return mushrooms and bacon to the sauce to warm through. Return chicken to the sauce for serving family style or plate individual servings of chicken and sauce over mashed potatoes or your preferred starch. Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.
Notes
- Beurre Manié: This is a classic French technique to thicken sauces by kneading equal parts softened butter and flour into a paste, which is whisked into the sauce at the end to create a glossy, velvety texture.
- You can substitute pearl onions with large diced shallots if pearl onions aren’t available.
- For best results, use an unoaked dry white wine such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Blanc to maintain a fresh, clean flavor.
- Braising to an internal temperature of 190°–200°F ensures the dark meat chicken is tender and falls off the bone.
- This dish pairs beautifully with creamy mashed potatoes, buttered noodles, or crusty bread to soak up the sauce.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Braising
- Cuisine: French
